Top 10s + Crime fiction | The Guardianhttp://www.theguardian.com/books/series/toptens+crime
Indexen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2015Sun, 02 Aug 2015 18:30:22 GMT2015-08-02T18:30:22Zen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2015The Guardianhttp://assets.guim.co.uk/images/guardian-logo-rss.c45beb1bafa34b347ac333af2e6fe23f.pnghttp://www.theguardian.com
The top 10 books about the mafiahttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jul/01/the-top-10-books-about-the-mafia-roberto-dainotto
<p>Whether through the seductive myth of honourable outlaws, or the bloody truth of ruthless criminals, this shadowy group has generated a vast literature – these are its highlights</p><p></p><p> How does one write a book in such an unwieldy field? One problem – apart from the obvious unmanageability of swelling bibliographies – is that “mafiological” literature is still beset by its original dilemma: is the mafia the set of codes of honour and family values we are accustomed to see at a Mascagni opera? Or is it the brutal reality of a criminal association whose only goal is the parasitical accumulation of wealth? One possibility is to keep in mind the old saying of Giambattista Vico: “myths have a public basis in truth.” What truth, then, lies at the heart of the mafia myths that the cultural industry has so gladly dispensed upon us? What social needs, what desires and fears are satisfied by mafia myths? </p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jul/01/the-top-10-books-about-the-mafia-roberto-dainotto">Continue reading...</a>SocietyBooksCultureCrime fictionFictionHistoryEric HobsbawmMario PuzoWed, 01 Jul 2015 11:47:31 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jul/01/the-top-10-books-about-the-mafia-roberto-dainottoPhotograph: Allstar/Cinetext/PARAMOUNT/Allstar/Cinetext/PARAMOUNTMarlon Brando in the 1972 film of The Godfather.Photograph: Allstar/Cinetext/PARAMOUNT/Allstar/Cinetext/PARAMOUNTMarlon Brando in the 1972 film of The Godfather.Photograph: IFC Films/Everett/RexCiro Petrone in a still from the 2008 film of Gomorrah.Photograph: IFC Films/Everett/RexCiro Petrone in a still from the 2008 film of Gomorrah.Photograph: Luca Bruno/APItalian forensic police at the house where mafia boss Bernardo Provenzano was arrested near Corleone in Sicily in 2006.Photograph: Luca Bruno/APItalian forensic police at the house where mafia boss Bernardo Provenzano was arrested near Corleone in Sicily in 2006.Roberto Dainotto2015-07-01T11:47:31ZTop 10 rural noir novelshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/20/top-10-rural-noir-novels-american-fiction
<p>From James M Cain to Flannery O’Connor, novelist Tom Bouman chooses the best fiction showing the dark side of American country life</p><p>“Rural noir” is a 21st-century term used to describe a stream of American literature that has been flowing since the 19th century. We’ve had dark, dangerous stories set in the countryside since William Leggett’s 1827 tale The Rifle. Some of the best-known writers associated with the label have suggested doing away with it, but at this point it seems futile to pretend that it doesn’t exist. If your book, like mine, has an all-terrain vehicle chase or a fistfight over a deer rifle in the middle of a swamp, somebody somewhere is going to call it rural noir.</p><p> </p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/20/top-10-rural-noir-novels-american-fiction">Continue reading...</a>Crime fictionBooksCultureFictionWed, 20 May 2015 10:27:17 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/20/top-10-rural-noir-novels-american-fictionPhotograph: Roadside/Everett /RexJennifer Lawrence in the film of Winter’s Bone.Photograph: Roadside/Everett /RexJennifer Lawrence in the film of Winter’s Bone.Photograph: AlamyClassical noir ... Lana Turner and John Garfield in the 1946 film version of The Postman Always Rings Twice.Photograph: AlamyClassical noir ... Lana Turner and John Garfield in the 1946 film version of The Postman Always Rings Twice.Tom Bouman2015-05-20T10:27:17ZPeter James's top 10 books about Brightonhttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/13/peter-james-top-10-books-about-brighton
<p>From Julie Burchill to Jane Austen, the crime novelist picks his favourite fiction featuring a city ‘perpetually helping police with their inquiries’</p><p>No&euml;l Coward once described Brighton thus: “Ah, dear Brighton, piers, queers and racketeers.” And Keith Waterhouse said: “Brighton has the air of a town that is perpetually helping the police with their inquiries.”<br /></p><p>A smuggling village in the middle ages, Brighton evolved into a racy spa town patronised by King George IV. He commissioned its most spectacular building, the Royal Pavilion, to impress his mistress, Mrs Fitzherbert. It must surely be the world’s grandest bespoke venue for illicit liaisons.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/13/peter-james-top-10-books-about-brighton">Continue reading...</a>FictionCrime fictionBooksBrightonCultureWed, 13 May 2015 11:13:30 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/13/peter-james-top-10-books-about-brightonPhotograph: Davis McCardle/Getty ImagesBuilt for crime ... Brighton beach.Photograph: Davis McCardle/Getty ImagesBuilt for crime ... Brighton beach.Peter James2015-05-13T11:13:30ZLindsey Davis's top 10 books about ancient Romehttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/06/lindsey-daviss-top-10-books-about-ancient-rome
<p>From sex and death to spin and shopping, the historical thriller writer digs out the best books to bring the ancient past to – all too recognisable – life<br></p><p>I write historical novels because I believe fiction should take people out of their daily misery into another world – and it may as well be a world they can believe in. I wrote about the ancient Romans because when I started nobody else seemed to be doing it. Now dozens are at it, but at least I had a head start, even though it fell to me to get the public used to this idea. After 20 Falco novels featuring my maverick detective from antiquity, I am now writing about Flavia Albia, his adopted daughter. She is also on the trail of wrongdoers, but shows Rome from a woman’s, and an outsider’s, perspective. It’s huge fun and rather refreshing.</p><p> Deadly Election, my latest book, began when I discovered Cicero’s brother (see below). It set me the challenge of writing about an election after the emperors had done away with such dangerous democracy. </p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/06/lindsey-daviss-top-10-books-about-ancient-rome">Continue reading...</a>FictionCrime fictionHistoryClassicsCultureBooksWed, 06 May 2015 13:00:02 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/06/lindsey-daviss-top-10-books-about-ancient-romePhotograph: Piero Cruciatti / Barcroft MediaCast of ‘the muleteer’, one of the victims of the 79AD disaster, exhibited at the Life and Death in Pompeii and Herculaneum exhibition at the British Museum in 2013.Photograph: Piero Cruciatti / Barcroft MediaCast of ‘the muleteer’, one of the victims of the 79AD disaster, exhibited at the Life and Death in Pompeii and Herculaneum exhibition at the British Museum in 2013.Photograph: Sklifas Steven/AlamyCool stuff ... Villa Adriana. Tivoli (different image appears in book).Photograph: Sklifas Steven/AlamyCool stuff ... Villa Adriana. Tivoli (different image appears in book).Photograph: AlamyVote Cicero! Bust of the great orator on the facade of Palazzo di Giustizia.Photograph: AlamyVote Cicero! Bust of the great orator on the facade of Palazzo di Giustizia.Lindsey Davis2015-05-06T13:00:02ZThe top 10 hotel novelshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/aug/13/top-10-hotel-novels-mark-watson
From Robert Bloch's Psycho to Chekhov's Lady With the Dog, <strong>Mark Watson</strong> explores the magnetism of hotels for novelists<br /><br /><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/series/toptens">• Read more writers' top 10s</a><p>The hotel is a seductive setting for a writer. It houses a wide spectrum of people who do not know each other, yet who spend nights under the same roof and are affected by one another's behaviour in ways they may not be conscious of: they hear each other's bathwater draining away, they catch snippets of conversations in the lifts. A couple in a hotel lobby might be lifelong partners, or lovers making the most of anonymity. A gang of three who arrive at 2am might be business colleagues who have just closed a deal in a different time zone, or murderers who've recently disposed of their victim.</p><p>With all this in mind, I set about writing my novel <a href="http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9781447243298">Hotel Alpha</a>, which is based in a grand London hotel but comes with 100 extra stories to reflect the nearly infinite variety of life in these places. Here are some of my more illustrious predecessors in the &quot;hotel novel&quot; sub-genre.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/aug/13/top-10-hotel-novels-mark-watson">Continue reading...</a>FictionBooksCultureAlfred HitchcockFilmStephen KingAgatha ChristieAnton ChekhovJohn IrvingHorrorThrillersRomanceCrime fictionWed, 13 Aug 2014 12:30:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/aug/13/top-10-hotel-novels-mark-watsonSportsphoto/Allstar/CinetextJanet Leigh in Hitchcock's Psycho … Robert Bloch's novel reveals more of Bates's mind and still delivers potent suspense and horror. Photograph: AllstarSportsphoto/Allstar/CinetextJanet Leigh in Hitchcock's Psycho … Robert Bloch's novel reveals more of Bates's mind and still delivers potent suspense and horror. Photograph: AllstarMark Watson2014-08-13T12:30:00ZTop 10 novels inspired by Shakespearehttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/apr/30/top-10-novels-inspired-shakespeare-herman-melville-patricia-highsmith
It's the end of Shakespeare's birthday week, but the playwright has provided year-round inspiration for writers from Herman Melville to Patricia Highsmith<p>Shakespeare famously customised existing plots when writing his plays, and added to them an acute perception of human experience which gave them universal significance. Thwarted love, ambition, greed, jealousy, fear – if you want to write a story about a fundamental predicament, there is a Shakespeare play to fit the bill. So it's not surprising that he has inspired so many writers, from Herman Melville to Angela Carter.</p><p></p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/apr/30/top-10-novels-inspired-shakespeare-herman-melville-patricia-highsmith">Continue reading...</a>BooksCultureFictionHerman MelvilleAldous HuxleySomerset MaughamPatricia HighsmithCrime fictionIris MurdochAngela CarterJane SmileyWilliam ShakespeareWed, 30 Apr 2014 12:00:02 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/apr/30/top-10-novels-inspired-shakespeare-herman-melville-patricia-highsmithPaula CourtWords, words, words … Scott Shepherd (with Richard Burton on film) playing Hamlet in The Wooster Group's production at the Edinburgh International festival. Photograph: Paula CourtPaula CourtWords, words, words … Scott Shepherd (with Richard Burton on film) playing Hamlet in The Wooster Group's production at the Edinburgh International festival. Photograph: Paula CourtSally O'Reilly2014-04-30T12:00:02ZThe top 10 locked-room mysterieshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jan/29/top-10-locked-room-mysteries-adrian-mckinty
From Wilkie Collins to Agatha Christie, thriller writer Adrian McKinty uncovers his favourite 'impossible murder' novels<p>The first proper mystery novel that I read was Murder On the Orient Express with a gaunt David Niven and a cherubic Peter Ustinov on the cover. Orient Express, you'll recall, is the one where everyone did it, which delighted me no end and I was immediately hooked. I began to work my way through the other Agatha Christies at Belfast Central library and it was probably the sympathetic librarian there who put into my hands The Murders in the Rue Morgue, the first real locked-room mystery that I came across.</p><p></p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jan/29/top-10-locked-room-mysteries-adrian-mckinty">Continue reading...</a>ThrillersFictionBooksCrime fictionCultureEdgar Allan PoeWilkie CollinsAgatha ChristieWed, 29 Jan 2014 15:53:25 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jan/29/top-10-locked-room-mysteries-adrian-mckintyAltrendo Images/GettyClosed cases … an eye looks through a keyhole Photograph: Altrendo Images/GettyAltrendo Images/GettyClosed cases … an eye looks through a keyhole Photograph: Altrendo Images/GettyAdrian McKinty2014-01-29T15:53:25ZThe top 10 crime novels in translationhttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jan/22/top-10-crime-novels-translation-ann-cleeves-scandinavia-montalbano
Novelist Ann Cleeves looks beyond Scandinavia for forensic insights into Maigret's Paris, Montalbano's Sicily and beyond<p>I love translated crime fiction.&nbsp; It gives me the buzz of a good story but a delicious voyeurism too: the same sensation as when I'm walking down a street at dusk and people have forgotten to close their curtains.&nbsp; Snapshots of different domestic lives, the food they eat, the pictures on the walls, the way they bring up their children.&nbsp; We can learn about a country's preoccupations by reading its popular fiction.&nbsp; Scandinavian crime has become so successful that books from other territories can be overlooked. Here are some examples to show that it's worth making wider reading investigations.</p><p></p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jan/22/top-10-crime-novels-translation-ann-cleeves-scandinavia-montalbano">Continue reading...</a>Crime fictionFictionBooksGeorges SimenonWed, 22 Jan 2014 10:49:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jan/22/top-10-crime-novels-translation-ann-cleeves-scandinavia-montalbanoGeorge Konig/RexNew cases … Rupert Davies as Inspector Maigret in the 1964 TV version. Photograph: George Konig/RexGeorge Konig/RexNew cases … Rupert Davies as Inspector Maigret in the 1964 TV version. Photograph: George Konig/RexAnn Cleeves2014-01-22T10:49:00ZSophie Hannah's top 10 pageturnershttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/dec/24/sophie-hannah-top-10-pageturners
The bestselling thriller writer picks 10 addictive reads - from crime to poetry, all guaranteed to be unputdownable<p>Last night I finished reading the excellent <a href="http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9780007120895" title="">One, Two, Buckle My Shoe</a> by <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/feb/15/my-hero-sophie-hannah-agatha-christie" title="">Agatha Christie</a>. I now have to make a tough decision: which book to read next? </p><p>The notion of choosing is problematic, however.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/dec/24/sophie-hannah-top-10-pageturners">Continue reading...</a>FictionCrime fictionBooksThrillersPoetrySophie KinsellaAgatha ChristieCultureTue, 24 Dec 2013 09:45:57 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/dec/24/sophie-hannah-top-10-pageturners-/AFP/Getty ImagesSophie Hannah shares the books that have 'gripped her into total submission'. Photograph: -/AFP/Getty ImagesPhilip Hartley/AlamyDiscover 'the archetypal Everywoman-plunged-into-a-nightmare' novel. Photograph: Philip Hartley/Alamy-/AFP/Getty ImagesSophie Hannah shares the books that have 'gripped her into total submission'. Photograph: -/AFP/Getty ImagesSophie Hannah2013-12-24T09:45:57ZAnne Holt's top 10 female detectiveshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/dec/08/anne-holt-top-10-female-detectives
From Miss Marple to Modesty Blaise, Lisbeth Salander to Nancy Drew, the Norwegian novelist pays tribute to some multi-dimensional crime-busters<p>Anne Holt began her career in the Oslo police department before founding her own law firm. She was then appointed to government and served as Norway's minister for justice in the late 1990s. Her first book was published in 1993 and she has subsequently developed two series: the Hanne Wilhelmsen series and the Vik/Stubo series, all of which will be published by Corvus in 2011.</p><p>&quot;If the great male detectives are archetypically loners, female detectives are doubly so. They are alienated both by entrenched male hierarchies at work and the Janus-like disjunction between their formidable professional personas and their vulnerable private lives. They have a special sensitivity to victims and a repressed compassion that fuels their zeal to see justice done. This multi-dimensionality makes for good writing and good reading. The dramatic potential is heightened because female detectives, without the physical strength of their male counterparts, have to be more resourceful, intelligent and tactical to solve the case. The stories tend to focus as much on their character as on the whodunnit.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/dec/08/anne-holt-top-10-female-detectives">Continue reading...</a>Crime fictionBest booksBooksCultureWed, 08 Dec 2010 12:34:11 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/dec/08/anne-holt-top-10-female-detectivesEverett Collection / Rex Features/Everett Collection / Rex FeaturesJoan Hickson as Miss Marple. Photograph: Everett Collection / Rex FeaturesEverett Collection / Rex Features/Everett Collection / Rex FeaturesJoan Hickson as Miss Marple. Photograph: Everett Collection / Rex FeaturesAnne Holt2010-12-08T12:34:11ZMaxim Jakubowski's top 10 crime locationshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/nov/17/crime-top-10-locations-fiction
The crime fiction expert and novelist follows the detectives from the back alleys of Brighton to the cobbles of Bologna<p>Maxim Jakubowski is a writer and editor who was the Guardian's crime fiction reviewer for 10 years. He has edited anthologies of noir tales about London, Paris and Rome and is currently working on a Venice volume. Following the Detectives, which has just been published, is an illustrated book that follows the trail of some of crime fiction's greatest sleuths, discovering the cities and countries in which they live and work. His new novel, I Was Waiting For You, moves between Paris, New York, Barcelona, Tangiers, Venice, Los Angeles and Rome.</p><p>&quot;I have always felt that one of literature's virtues and attractions is that it can powerfully evoke places and times and bring them to life alongside plot and characters. Hardy's Wessex springs to mind, as do Thomas Mann's Venice or the Saint Petersburg of Dostoevsky and the teeming London of Dickens. But I would argue that crime and mystery fiction offers the perfect blend of storytelling and sense of place, where characters and atmosphere prove of unique appeal: the location works as an extra, indispensable character and is indivisible from the sometimes breathless action taking place in the narrative. Think of Stockholm and Stieg Larsson's Lisbeth Salander, Sara Paretsky's Vic Warshawski and the mean streets of Chicago, Montalb&aacute;n's Pepe Carvalho and Barcelona, Alexander McCall Smith's Botswana or Mankell's Wallander in Ystad. What with the tsunami of popularity that crime and thrillers have enjoyed over recent years, there are now few places on the map that are not associated with a specific detective or cop. These are some I find most distinctive.&quot;</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/nov/17/crime-top-10-locations-fiction">Continue reading...</a>Crime fictionFictionBooksCultureTravelTravel writingLiterary tripsWed, 17 Nov 2010 13:24:32 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/nov/17/crime-top-10-locations-fictionAllstar Collection/Cinetext/WARN/Sportsphoto Ltd./AllstarLA story ... Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart in the film version of The Big Sleep. Photograph: Allstar Collection/Cinetext/WARN/Sportsphoto Ltd./AllstarAllstar Collection/Cinetext/WARN/Sportsphoto Ltd./AllstarLA story ... Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart in the film version of The Big Sleep. Photograph: Allstar Collection/Cinetext/WARN/Sportsphoto Ltd./AllstarMaxim Jakubowski2010-11-17T13:24:32ZMichael Stanley's top 10 African crime novelshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jun/30/michael-stanley-african-crime
The African crime writing duo pick the best books in their field, from established greats Agatha Christie and John Le Carré to newer names on the scene such as Kwei Quartey and Deon Meyer<p>&quot;Ever since we started writing detective stories set in Africa (A Carrion Death and A Deadly Trade), we've paid more attention to the many wonderful mysteries set on the continent. Some of the writers were born in Africa, others not. Some are oldies, but others are contemporary, reflecting the surge of mystery writers interested in Africa. The 10 books we've chosen all capture some aspect of African culture or location. All but one relate to sub-Saharan Africa – the lands of colonies and colonial masters; of newly democratic countries and post-independence struggles. Reading these books will introduce you to areas with which you may be unfamiliar and perhaps give you new insights into some of the oldest cultures in the world.&quot;</p><p>Michael Stanley is the writing team of native Africans Michael Sears and Stanley Trollip. Research for their books has taken the friends tracking lions at night, fighting bush fires on the Savuti plains in northern Botswana, surviving a charging elephant and losing their navigation maps while flying over the Kalahari. </p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jun/30/michael-stanley-african-crime">Continue reading...</a>BooksCultureCrime fictionThrillersWed, 30 Jun 2010 14:27:45 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jun/30/michael-stanley-african-crimeMartin Harvey/ Gallo Images/CORBISSpotted Hyena: body disposal expert? Photograph: Martin Harvey/Gallo Images/CORBISPRStanley Michael, African crime writing teamMichael Stanley2010-06-30T14:27:45ZJonathan Kellerman's top 10 LA noir novelshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/mar/31/jonathan-kellerman-top-10-la-noir-novels
The novelist patrols California's meanest streets for its hardest boiled storytellers, picking up some very unusual suspects<p>Jonathan Kellerman writes tales of crime and detection which expose the shadowy side of glittering Los Angeles. After a career in child psychology, he turned to writing full time. He lives in southern California with his wife, the novelist Faye Kellerman, and their four children.</p><p>&quot;I tend to avoid lists, as I don't like reductionism in general, have never viewed writing fiction as a competitive sport and, let's face it, someone good is always going to be excluded. There are many fine contemporary writers covering the LA scene — Robert Crais's latest novel is first rate. But I'm going to concentrate on older books, because it was the previous generation of noir which inspired me to begin the Delaware series over a quarter of a century ago. I'm also going to expand the parameters from Los Angeles proper to southern California: LA isn't a city, it's a concept which applies anywhere in the Golden State where nice weather abounds, a chasm yawns between the haves and the have-nots, and delusional blind ambition is habitually confused with work ethic and wisdom. Given that preamble, here are a few standouts.&quot;</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/mar/31/jonathan-kellerman-top-10-la-noir-novels">Continue reading...</a>Crime fictionBooksCultureLos AngelesWed, 31 Mar 2010 08:32:09 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/mar/31/jonathan-kellerman-top-10-la-noir-novelsKen Biggs/GettyLos Angeles, where 'nice weather abounds, a chasm yawns between the haves and the have-nots, and delusional blind ambition is habitually confused with work ethic and wisdom'. Photograph: Ken Biggs/GettyKen Biggs/GettyLos Angeles, where 'nice weather abounds, a chasm yawns between the haves and the have-nots, and delusional blind ambition is habitually confused with work ethic and wisdom'. Photograph: Ken Biggs/GettyJonathan Kellerman2010-03-31T08:32:09ZMatt Rees's top 10 novels set in the Arab worldhttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jan/13/matt-rees-novels-arab-world
The Jerusalem-based crime writer picks novels that offer 'a much more profound contact' with this region than the news<p>Matt Rees was born in Newport, Wales in 1967, and has lived in Jerusalem since 1996. As a journalist, Rees covered the Middle East for over a decade for the Scotsman, then Newsweek and from 2000 until 2006 as Time magazine's Jerusalem bureau chief.&nbsp; His first book was a non-fiction account of Israeli and Palestinian society, Cain's Field. He published the first novel featuring Palestinian detective Omar Yussef, The Bethlehem Murders, in 2007, which won the CWA John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger award. The Saladin Murders and The Samaritan's Secret followed in 2008 and 2009. The Bethlehem Murders won the CWA John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger 2008. The Fourth Assassin, published next month, follows Omar to visit his son in New York's &quot;Little Palestine&quot; in Brooklyn.</p><p><a href="http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/sortResults.do?keyword=matt%20rees&amp;isbn=&amp;title=&amp;author=&amp;publisher=&amp;format=&amp;pageNo=0&amp;category=&amp;sort=p.author_surname"><br />Buy Matt Rees books from the Guardian bookshop</a><br />&nbsp;<br />&quot;The Arab literary world and Western publishing don't cross over much. The literature of the Arab world is largely unknown in the west, and even westerners who write about Arabs are sometimes seen as fringe, cult writers. That comes at a cost to the west, because literature could be such an important bridge between two cultures so much at odds. What we see of the Arab world comes from news reports of war and other madness. Literature would be a much more profound contact.<br />&nbsp;<br />&quot;I live in Jerusalem and write fiction about the Palestinians because it's a better way to understand the reality of life in Palestine than journalism and non-fiction. The books in this list, in their different ways, unveil elements of life across the Arab world that you won't see in the newspaper or on TV.&quot;&nbsp;</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jan/13/matt-rees-novels-arab-world">Continue reading...</a>Best booksFictionCrime fictionBooksCultureWed, 13 Jan 2010 11:25:29 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jan/13/matt-rees-novels-arab-worldAmr Dalsh/ReutersA Cairo mosque. Photograph: Amr Dalsh/ReutersAmr Dalsh/ReutersA Cairo mosque. Photograph: Amr Dalsh/ReutersMatt Rees2010-01-13T11:25:29ZJames McCreet's top 10 Victorian detective storieshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jan/06/james-mccreet-top-10-victorian-detective-stories
The debut crime novelist offers some alternatives to the fanciful solutions and foggy London of Sherlock Holmes<p>James McCreet is the author of The Incendiary's Trail, a Victorian detective thriller influenced by the early works of Edgar Allan Poe and drawing on detailed historical research. Our review described it as &quot;<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/jul/11/incendiary-trail-james-mccreet">splendid… full of vividly depicted squalor and grotesquery</a>&quot;.</p><p>McCreet was born in Sheffield in 1971. He is currently at work on the third book in the series alongside his job as a copywriter.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jan/06/james-mccreet-top-10-victorian-detective-stories">Continue reading...</a>Crime fictionFictionCharles DickensBooksCultureWed, 06 Jan 2010 12:19:15 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jan/06/james-mccreet-top-10-victorian-detective-storiesAntoine Francois Jean Claudet/Getty ImagesTom Smith, a well known 'Peeler' (so called after Robert Peel, who reorganised the Police Force in 1829). Photograph: Antoine Francois Jean Claudet/Getty ImagesAntoine Francois Jean Claudet/Getty ImagesTom Smith, a well known 'Peeler' (so called after Robert Peel, who reorganised the Police Force in 1829).
Photograph: Antoine Francois Jean Claudet/Getty ImagesGuardian Staff2010-01-06T12:19:15ZCJ Box's top 10 US crime novelists who 'own' their territoryhttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/dec/02/cj-box-us-crime-novelists-top-10
From Carl Hiaasen's Florida to Sara Paretsky's Chicago, novelist CJ Box identifies the US's best criminal tour guides<p>CJ Box's series of Joe Pickett novels, as well as standalone books, have made him the winner of the Anthony Award, the Prix Calibre 38, the Macavity Award, the Gumshow Award, the Barry Award and the Edgar Award for the Best novel of 2008. US bestsellers, they have been translated into 21 languages. Box lives with his family outside Cheyenne, Wyoming. Visit his website at <a href="http://www.cjbox.net">www.cjbox.net</a>. Three Weeks to Say Goodbye, hailed by Harlan Coben as &quot;a non-stop thrill ride&quot; is his UK debut, and is published this week.</p><p><a href="http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9781848872912">Buy CJ Box books at the Guardian bookshop</a></p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/dec/02/cj-box-us-crime-novelists-top-10">Continue reading...</a>Crime fictionBooksCultureWed, 02 Dec 2009 11:55:40 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/dec/02/cj-box-us-crime-novelists-top-10Sportsphoto/AllstarWarshawski's beat ... Downtown Chicago at night. Photograph: Sportsphoto/AllstarSportsphoto/AllstarWarshawski's beat ... Downtown Chicago at night. Photograph: Sportsphoto/AllstarCJ Box2009-12-02T11:55:40ZThe top 10 Agatha Christie mysterieshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/sep/15/top-10-agatha-christie-novels
Christie expert John Curran sifts through the evidence to detect the 10 best mysteries by the world's most popular thriller writer<p>John Curran, a lifelong Christie fan, lives in Dublin. For many years he edited the official Agatha Christie Newsletter and acted as a consultant to the National Trust during the restoration of Greenway House, Dame Agatha's Devon home. His first book, Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks, which explores the contents of 73 hitherto unseen journals, has just been published.</p><p><a href="http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9780007310562">Buy Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks at the Guardian bookshop</a></p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/sep/15/top-10-agatha-christie-novels">Continue reading...</a>Agatha ChristieCrime fictionBooksCultureBest booksThrillersWed, 16 Sep 2009 09:07:03 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/sep/15/top-10-agatha-christie-novelsAFP/Getty ImagesSitting comfortably ... Agatha Christie, pictured at home in Devon in 1946. Photograph: AFP/Getty ImagesAFP/Getty ImagesAgatha Christie, pictured at home in Devon in 1946. Photograph: AFP/Getty ImagesJohn Curran2009-09-16T09:07:03ZBrian McGilloway's top 10 modern Irish crime novelshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/apr/22/mcgilloway-irish-crime-novels
From police procedurals to satires and even screwball comedies, the Inspector Devlin author picks the best from a booming genre<p>Brian McGilloway is author of the critically acclaimed Inspector Benedict Devlin series. He was born in Derry, Northern Ireland in 1974, where these days he combines his writing career with his work as head of English at St Columb's College.</p><p>His first novel, Borderlands, was shortlisted for the CWA New Blood Dagger, and was followed in 2008 by Gallows Lane. His third Benedict Devlin novel, Bleed a River Deep, has just been published by Macmillan.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/apr/22/mcgilloway-irish-crime-novels">Continue reading...</a>Best booksCrime fictionBooksCultureWed, 22 Apr 2009 11:04:46 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/apr/22/mcgilloway-irish-crime-novelsJulien Behal/PACrime scenes ... Gardai in St Stephens Green, Dublin. Photograph: Julien Behal/PAJulien Behal/PAGardai in St Stephens Green, Dublin. Photograph: Julien Behal/PABrian McGilloway2009-04-22T11:04:46ZCamilla Läckberg's top 10 Swedish crime novelshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/mar/11/camilla-lackberg-swedish-crime-best
There seems to be an endless supply of great Swedish crime writers. One of the latest northern stars to be translated, Camilla Läckberg, here picks out her own strongest suspects<p>Born in 1974, Camilla L&auml;ckberg began her working life as an economist, but a course in creative crime writing set her on a fresh track that six books later has established her in the front rank of Swedish crime writers. Her mysteries, all set in her tiny home town of Fj&auml;llbacka, have all been number one bestsellers in Sweden. The Preacher is the latest of her novels to become available in English translation. </p><p><a href="http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9780007270958#">Buy The Preacher at the Guardian bookshop</a></p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/mar/11/camilla-lackberg-swedish-crime-best">Continue reading...</a>Best booksFictionCrime fictionBooksCultureThu, 12 Mar 2009 09:22:34 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/mar/11/camilla-lackberg-swedish-crime-bestAlexander Benz/CorbisBleak outlook ... a burial ground on Kurt Wallander's beat in Ystad. Photograph: Alexander Benz/CorbisAlexander Benz/CorbisA burial ground on Kurt Wallander's beat in Ystad Photograph: Alexander Benz/CorbisCamilla Läckberg2009-03-12T09:22:34ZTana French's top 10 maverick mysterieshttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/sep/26/crime.bestbooks
From PD James to Patricia Highsmith and Donna Tartt, the novelist picks the books that defy all the thriller's conventions - but remain thrilling<p>Tana French trained as an actor at Trinity College, Dublin, and has worked in theatre, film and voiceover. Her first novel, In the Woods, won a Mystery Writers of America Edgar award earlier this year, and her second - The Likeness - has just been published.</p><p><a href="http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9780340924778">Buy The Likeness at the Guardian bookshop</a></p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/sep/26/crime.bestbooks">Continue reading...</a>BooksCrime fictionCultureBest booksThrillersTana FrenchDonna TarttPatricia HighsmithFri, 26 Sep 2008 08:19:04 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/sep/26/crime.bestbooksKobalRule breaker ... Matt Damon as Tom Ripley. Photograph: KobalKobalGuardian Staff2008-09-26T08:19:04Z